Unseen Amsterdam photography festival 2018 highlights

Unseen Amsterdam has quickly become a popular fixture in town. Held every September, and now in its seventh year, it showcases the latest developments in photography by providing opportunity for up and coming image-based artists to show their work with a focus on new developments in the medium. The three-day fair presents an array of exhibitions, talks, awards and more. Here are four tips of what you shouldn’t miss at this year’s event taking place 21-23 September at Amsterdam's Westergasfabriek.

4 September 2018

Debut work at the Fair

The mainstay of Unseen is the Fair featuring over 50 galleries and 140+ artists from 35 countries. It’s here where you’re given a sneak peek at the very latest cutting-edge work by the hottest new names in photography well before anyone else, anywhere in the world. It’s all about cultivating emerging talent and presenting innovative new developments in the field. It’s almost a guarantee that you’ll leave you wanting more after taking in this broad-ranging exhibition.

In Print

One of the highlights of Unseen is its’ dedication to print. The annual Dummy Award, a competition presenting a selection of submissions of work-in-progress, showcases photographers working in book form. This year 32 entries were selected from 212, which we’re sure was no mean feat to whittle down the options. The winning photographer will be announced on 21 September and will subsequently have their book published. If you want to see the Dummy Award finalists, then head to the massive Book Market. You’ll find them there along with a comprehensive range of rare and experimental photobooks from the 76 other independent publishers. Don’t forget to grab a copy if the Unseen Magazine, an in-depth and informative look at the world of contemporary photography.

Living Room

On each day Unseen you can listen to a diverse range of industry leaders, artists and curators in the Living Room, the educational focus point of the festival. Take a seat and take in a range of perspectives and viewpoints about what’s happening in the world of photography now through engaging presentations and panel discussions. Futures and Aperture co-curated this year’s program so expect fresh conversations and viewpoints that will ignite your imagination.

ING Unseen Talent Award 2018

Voting has begun for this year’s ING Unseen Talent Award 2018. Five emerging artists from Hungary, Finland, the Netherlands, Ireland and Belarus are in the running. This program is all about kick-starting the careers of emerging artists by introducing them to photography professionals to help them build networks and relationships, garner support from experts and to generally give them access to potential opportunities. If that weren’t enough, each of the finalists has been mentored by British installation artist, filmmaker and photographer Isaac Julien over the past few months. Along with the main winner being announced at the opening event on 20 September, a People’s Choice winner will announced via an online voting process currently open.

David Wills

David loves nothing more than a city stroll with camera in hand, taking in all that wherever he is has to offer. Think idiosyncratic images, granular observations and you have an idea of his photographic focus. He draws too, enjoys wrangling with words and is constantly amazed and inspired by the wonder of Amsterdam.

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